The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Oxy-fuel torches, or gas torches, generally employ oxygen and a fuel gas, such as acetylene or propane, by way of example, to cut or heat a workpiece. More specifically, preheat oxygen and the fuel gas are mixed and ignited to provide heat to the workpiece, and then additional oxygen, commonly referred to as cutting oxygen, is added to react with the heated workpiece. This reaction of the cutting oxygen with the heated workpiece initiates sufficient heat and momentum of the gases to initiate a cutting process.
A typical auto-ignition gas cutting torch employs a piezoelectric igniter and spark source near the handle of the torch. To start the gas torch, the operator activates a trigger connected to the piezoelectric igniter to ignite a mixture of the preheat oxygen and the fuel gas. Typically, the mixture of the preheat oxygen and the fuel gas is a fuel-rich mixture. The level of the fuel gas is set to be significantly higher than the level of the preheat oxygen so that the mixture creates a highly carbonizing environment to facilitate ignition of the mixture. Once the mixture of the fuel gas and the preheat gas is ignited, the operator releases the trigger and further adjusts the flow of fuel gas and the cutting oxygen gas to optimize the flame and initiate the cutting process.